Pages

Research from ComScore shows that Android and Apple now hold more than 93 percent of market share (Android with 52 percent vs. Apple's 41 percent), with Windows Phone 8 (3.4 percent) and BlackBerry (2.9 percent) competing for the third spot.

While Microsoft, Redmond, Wash., battles for single-digit market share, its edge over BlackBerry is tight integration with the enterprise.

"Windows Phone is a core part of our offering because we think it has strong potential in the enterprise," said MobileIron's Rege.

Security experts say that Windows Phone 8 has significantly improved its application sandboxing. Rege said Windows Phone 8 supports fewer MDM policies compared with iOS and that means vendors such as MobileIron can't provide the same level of control over the OS.

"The Windows Phone 8 is fully capable of supporting information workers, just not those needing to meet high-level regulatory or security requirements," said Ryan Smith, lead threat engineer at mobile security startup Mojave Networks, San Mateo, Calif.

For those reasons, coupled with user demand, Windows Phone 8 lands at the end of most security experts lists. That's not to say most MDM vendors don't support Windows Phone 8, because most do.

Where BlackBerry comes up short on potential, Microsoft's Windows Phone 8 oozes with possibilities. Mobile security is a moving target, Smith said. Through Microsoft's reach into the enterprise and its budding Nokia handset division, the security story could change by Microsoft's next mobile OS release, he said.

This article originally appeared as an exclusive on the CRN Tech News App for iOS and Windows 8.